Characterizes a number of cherished beliefs regarding early childhood art education as myths and argues that their continued use impedes educational reform. These include a belief in art as therapy, the inherent validity of childhood expression, the superiority of process over product, and limited intervention by teachers. (MJP)

Asserts that art teachers must be prepared to understand and work with persons with disabilities. Describes a one-semester pilot program for art education students designed to examine what kinds of academic preparation and practicum experiences are needed. (CFR)

Presents a series of pictures drawn by an autistic adult over a period of years. The pictures represent recollections of a day in his childhood. This representation is notable because of its consistent theme, as well as its reflection of the ability to reexperience and enjoy pleasant past memories. (MJP)

This book describes the process and results of a 5 year arts initiative, Artists in Minnesota Schools and Communities (AMSC). Based on the premise that rural communities hold an undervalued wealth of artistic and cultural resources rarely tapped by schools, the project piloted a variety of models for integrating art in the educational experiences…

The Children's Art Carnival (CAC) is an intensive holistic reading and reading-oriented arts program for Chapter 1-eligible students who have scored below the cut-off point on a standardized reading test or have performed poorly in the classroom. This report presents the findings of evaluations of the 1990-91 and 1991-92 programs by the Office of…

Describes an intraprofessional collaboration between a graduate program in art therapy and expressive therapies, an urban public school system, and a community mental health agency. Examines the important role of art and expressive therapies in providing services to underserved, at-risk children in public schools. Suggests the development of a…

Examines a visual art program for at-risk students that attempts to increase self-esteem, stimulate inquiry, and develop critical thinking through art criticism and self- expression. Summarizes the responses of 11 at-risk students and 35 general education college students to the question, "What is art?" (MJP)

Traces the development of artistic ability in a six-year-old boy with autism and mild mental retardation. Addresses questions concerning autism and artistic development including whether intellectual realism is a necessary precursor to visual realism and whether a two-dimensional photographic memory is used as opposed to three-dimensional…

Reviews the work of neurobiologist, David Marr, concerning artistic ability and autism. Summarizes Marr's theory of perceptual vision illuminating the relationships among object, observer, perceptual process, and image. Briefly reviews the cases of four autistic people with extraordinary drawing skills. (MJP)

Children experience a wide variety of life experiences that are stressful to them. Children's stories and drawings allow adults to understand children's perceptions and reactions, and picture books enable children to experience stressors safely in a supportive setting. This paper describes a storytelling and drawing intervention based on art…

This document is prefaced with a descriptive introduction to the "Access to the Arts Through Assistive Technology Project." The contents that follow are organized in 5 parts. Part 1 includes: "Introduction" (Betsy Foley), and "My Voice Has Wings" (Jeff Moyer). Part 2, "Major Addresses," presents: (1) "Welcome from the Wisconsin Department of…